European Parliament votes to trigger Article 7 against Hungary

ORBAN DEFIANT

Despite the possibility of sanctions, Orban vowed to defy the European Parliament, saying "Hungary will not accede to this blackmailing ... and if needed we will stand up to you".

This would not be the first time the Hungarian PM has gone against a EU institution. Hungary has repeatedly defied Brussels regarding the migrant crisis, refusing to resettle refugees in a scheme agreed upon by EU institutions, and shutting down NGOs and activists from helping migrants, even when functioning with EU funds.

The strategy has apparently been to Orban's benefit, helping him reelection in April 2018 by a landslide. His Fidesz party gained a 2/3 majority in the Hungarian parliament after voters backed his anti-immigration platform, and Orban himself won his third consecutive term as prime minister.

Hungarian MEPs from Fidezs, also emboldened, questioned the final count on the resolution Wednesday. The European Parliament's legal services will verify the count, but is not expected to overturn it.

POSSIBLE SANCTIONS

In a press conference following the successful vote for the legislative resolution, rapporteur Judith Sargentini indicated that the next steps to be taken were currently unclear.

With only one precedent of Article 7 being triggered in the past, and at the behest of a different institution, the European Commission, Sargentini was not able to give a definitive schedule to reporters.

"As of now there is no timeline" for the European Council to act, she said. She expected, however, that she would be invited to a European Council summit to present her report.

According to European Commission documents, the first set of procedures, Article 7 (1), are intended to help prevent "a serious breach of European values".

If launched by the European Council, these procedures will put in place a series of mechanisms designed to protect against the breach in terms agreed to by the member state when they joined the European Union.

If preventative measures do not work, or the breach has already occurred, Article 7 (2) can put sanctions in place, including the stripping of voting rights in the European Council and other EU bodies.